Taylor Swift's Songwriting For Calvin Harris And Little Big Town Could Earn Her Millions

Taylor Swift presents the award for entertainer of the year at the 50th annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016, in Nashville, Tenn. (Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

For a little while there, it looked as if the second half of 2016 was going to be missing any music from Taylor Swift, but like it or not, the country-turned-pop singer-songwriter has found her way onto the airwaves yet again, though not in the same manner in which the public is accustomed to. The powerful musician and pop star has written a pair of songs this year that have both gone on to quickly become true hits, and their successes could mean big bucks for Swift, even in an “off year,” as if there was ever such a thing when it came to her.

The first smash Swift scored this in 2016 was “This Is What You Came For,” a song she originally published under a pseudonym. The “Blank Space” singer gave the track to her then-boyfriend EDM producer Calvin Harris, who invited Rihanna to take on vocal duties. The song wasted no time in rising on the charts all around the world, and since it peaked at No. 3 here in the States, the song has sold millions of copies, racked up hundreds of millions of streams and it was a radio favorite for months on end.

More recently, country music group Little Big Town revealed that their new single “Better Man” was also penned by Swift herself. The song is the first to be released off their upcoming album The Breaker, which is expected sometime in 2017. The revelation that somebody as well known as Swift was involved helped rocket “Man” up the charts, certifying it as a hit in the country world in no time. The song has thus far peaked at No. 53 on the Hot 100 and No. 6 on the genre-specific Hot Country Songs tally.

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The success enjoyed by these two songs could net Swift a pretty healthy payday and up her earnings for the year. According to a source with a deep understanding of Swift’s publishing situation, a top five smash on the Hot 100 could earn a songwriter—any songwriter, not just one as famous and beloved as Swift—around $500,000 or $600,000 over time, and a No. 1 hit on the country charts could bring in about the same amount. Now, “Better Man” hasn’t yet made it to the top of the country tally, but it’s close, and with names like Little Big Town and Taylor Swift attached to it, anything is possible for the new single.

The source suggests that a fair estimate when it comes to Swift’s earnings as a songwriter from these two tracks alone could be close to $1 million, and that’s not even the full story. The 10-time Grammy winner could earn even more dough from “This Is What You Came For” and “Better Man” from technical sources and because of the fact that she owns a part of her own publishing, so the total could be significantly north of that $1 million figure when all is said and done.

It is worth noting that for almost the entirety of her career, Swift’s songwriting prowess has been proven through her own songs, though when she's in between campaigns, she decided to hand off her lyrics to others. It is possible that the pop singer specifically opted to gift these tracks, and, importantly, to let the public know she was behind them, in a year when she wasn’t busy promoting anything or touring, where the majority of her money comes from.

Between 2015 and mid-2016, Swift brought in an incredible $170 million, which made her the highest-earning celebrity in the world. She probably won’t hit the same high point when FORBES refreshes that annual list come summer 2017, but the fractions of cents she earns every time both “Better Man” and “This Is What You Came For” are played on the radio, streamed on certain platforms or even purchased on iTunes will add up and are sure to keep her living well, even during her “downtime.”